Sonic Shrinkathon
by Ex Oxide
Summary: What happens when you parody the Sonic X anime on request randomly.  Board games take on a special meaning here and let's have a laugh about it.  giantess gts content.


In Tail's lab the genius fox is working on yet another invention. It's been a while and he's concentrating pretty hard. The entirety of a few days of work is coming together right now and he's trying to see if he can make it mean something without frying another circuit board.

"What are you working on, Tails?" Chris asks, making an entrance. "You've been down here all day."

"Oh, this?" The scientist replies without looking up. "It's my pet project."

"It looks just like you." Chris laughs. "Trying to make yourself another lab assistant?"

"You're not that far off. Speaking of assisting…give me a hand, will you? Start the download of the operating system while I check the connections."

"And help you put me out of work? Sure." He sets down his drink and walks over to the mainframe. "Initializing download…hey these schematics look strange. What is this robot designed to do?"

"Hold on a second…" Tails inspects the hands of the robot. "Repressurize this…and done!" He looks it over. "Once I start it up I'll have to-"

"Tails, hey. Over here." Chris reminds him, interrupting a train of thought.

"Chris, were you saying something?"

"Yeah, about the operating system for-"

"That?" Tails smiles. "It's my greatest invention yet. Combining that program with the special sensors installed into its hands it should be able to adeptly manipulate tools."

"Really?"

"Mmhm." He nods. "I've got it engineered to perform all sorts-" There's a loud crash upstairs. "Uh-oh…" Several other loud thuds follow. "That's not good."

"Get back here!" Comes a yell from above followed by the sound of something breaking. "You can't hide from me!"

"Looks like I have visitors…" Chris mentions.

"Better see what they want before they wreck the house." Tails says resignedly. Chris nods and they proceed upstairs with the newly started robot in tow.

"…why don't 'you just sit down and play a game with me?" Amy asks advancing on Sonic.

"When we're already half-way through a game of whack-a-hedgehog?" Sonic quips. "And I'm winning?"

"I think it would be easier if you just played a game with her." Cream says softly. Then she would stop chasing you…"

The young rabbit goes unheard it seems as Amy charges Sonic again. More collateral damage is dealt by the second to the living room as "whack-a-hedgehog" continues. He bounds across the room around the couch and is halfway over a lamp when it's knocked over by a wild hammer swing hitting his leg. Watching a hedgehog make a course correction in mid air while possessing no aerial ability is worth a laugh and a clatter.

"Whoa!" Sonic is thrown off course landing on the falling light fixture. "Oww, I'll give you one point-" Amy is standing over him and looking fiendishly pleased, hammer upraised.

"Stop it right there you two!" Tails demands as authoritatively as he can as he walks in. "Do that somewhere else!"

"You heard him, Sonic!" Amy snaps angrily. "Stop playing around!"

"I'm talking to the both of you!" Tails says as sternly as he can muster.

"Oh…" Amy looks chastised and lowers her hammer.

"What's the matter, guys?" Chris asks lightly making an entrance along with the Tails bot.

"Amy wants Sonic to play a game with her but he doesn't want to." Cream explains.

"Well, whether you play the game or not, you have to stop making so much noise." Tails states. "I can hardly experiment with the house shaking like it is."

"But Sonic's not being fair!" Amy cries. "He hardly ever spends any time with me!"

"She's right…" Cream mentions sheepishly, as though anyone has missed that little tidbit.

"Hmm…" Chris begins to think. "We'll need to come to a compromise."

"Huh?" Amy sounds hopeful.

"Well I have to agree with Amy and Cream on this one, Sonic. You don't spend much time with her…"

"…alright." Sonic concurs reluctantly.

"…and one game doesn't seem like that big of a deal so…"

"You'll play?" Amy gives Chris a hug. "Thank you!"

"I didn't say that…" He hedges in her embrace, wondering why she's jumping to conclusions so quickly.

"But it's a four player game…"

"I sure can't play by myself." Sonic grins. "The more the merrier, right?"

Chris smiles. "Why not?" He turns to Tails. "You in?"

"Uh uh." The scientist replies. "I have to finish this robot and its relay connect…" He trails off as he catches Amy's pleading look.

"Please?" She whines, trying her best to yank on his heartstrings.

Tails sighs. "I guess so…" She's almost jumping for joy as she goes to retrieve the game. "What did we just get into?" Chris and Sonic shrug seeing as clues are something of a prized possession at the moment since there aren't any.

X

At Station Square airport an express flight from the coast has just landed. Dressed in high fashion, the first person to disembark is none other than movie star Lindsey Thorndike. Straight out of first-class and right into the airport and in the hands of eager service people like silver screen royalty are used to.

"May I help you with your bags?" Asks an airport attendant.

"Please do, I'm quite grateful." The local celebrity replies pulling out a cell phone. "Could you call me a cab too? I've got a lot of important phone calls to make."

"Of course madam. Would you like me to book you a hotel room as well?"

"No, thank you. I'll be staying at home; I think they have room for me." Lindsey laughs. "Though it will be a surprise I'm in town…"

X

A few minutes later Amy has returned with what appears to be a board game. They all gather round on the living room floor near the board. She's still setting up so Sonic is lying back waiting while Tails and Chris talk amongst themselves to pass the time.

"I've got it programmed to perform all kinds of functions automatically; I don't have to do any maintenance, just repairs." Tails says, continuing about the greatness of his robot.

"What's with the weird tails?"

"Of course it can't fly like me but I figured it still needed the tails for something. In addition to helping it balance those are power cords for AC and DC current. It can plug in and recharge anywhere!"

"That's neat."

"Whenever it gets low on power or it's in the lab at all it's supposed to plug itself up. It's got a lot of extra cord wound inside too so it can work while charging."

"I don't see any buttons or special panel; how do you control it?"

"It's voice activated, that's what most of the operating system download was. My voice print and recognition sequences."

"Cool!"

"Done!" Amy says happily. Everybody turns to look. It appears to be your average maze board game. "Put these in…" She drops in three marbles. "…and we're ready to go!"

"What kind of game is this?" Sonic asks.

"Maniac Maze!" Amy says with a grin.

"I've never seen anything like this before and I've played a lot of board games…" Chris muses to himself. "How do you play?"

"It's easy." Amy explains. "All you have to do is avoid the marbles and make it to the exit. You lose if you're knocked down the hole in the center."

"I'm curious as to the mechanics of the game." Tails says. "I don't see a start space, dice, or even any place pieces. Just the glowing green spot in the center of the board and three glowing number spots the same color. It doesn't make any sense."

Amy's smile broadens. "The game starts you somewhere random and you can move as often as you want. As for the pieces…" She giggles. "Just put your hands on the numbered spots and we'll be able to start."

Sonic shrugs. "Sounds easy enough." He reaches for #1 but something about Amy's smile remains unnerving.

"Here we go…" Chris grabs #2

"Wonder what she meant by that?" Tails thinks touching #3. "It's warm…what?" He feels a sudden falling feeling. Before he can spin his tails to slow his descent he hits ground. "Ow…hey wait a minute this isn't…"

"Ready, guys?" Comes from above.

"No wonder we didn't need any pieces…" He says to himself looking up at Amy's jubilant face. "We are the pieces…"

"Set…GO!" She exclaims as she tilts the box.

"Got to find a way out…" Sonic thinks to himself. "Better get started…" He darts off. Or tries to. He's almost running in place and sliding with the slant of the area. "What the-"

"The floor's coated in something slippery!" Chris exclaims. "It's like running on ice!"

"You're telling me!" Sonic fires back.

"Find a wall to brace yourself against and get your bearings!" Tails yells.

"Bearings, for what? How do we know which way to go?" Chris asks.

"That's a good question." Sonic grabs a passing wall and hangs on. "Hmm…hey!" He looks the barriers up and down. "Chris, Tails, can you see arrows on the walls? I've got some near me."

"Yeah. Wonder if they point to out?"

"I'm willing to bet that they do. The game has to have some kind of concession for us with a disadvantage like this…" Tails concludes. "Darn no-fly zone…" He mutters.

"How do you like this game so far?" Amy teases, shaking the labyrinth again. "Bet I win!"

"No chance!" Sonic retorts. "I'll be out of here in a flash!" With that he bolts downhill following his arrows. Their opponent just laughs as a distant rumble grows nearer. "I've got this-"

"Look out, the marbles-" Chris says hastily jumping over one as it takes a sojourn around to a corridor behind him.

"-ow!" The blue hedgehog tumbles end over end around a corner having found one of his own.

"-will trip you up!"

"Now he tells me…" He mutters springing to his feet and off again as the offending sphere makes a return run.

"Bet you I wi-in!" Amy says again in a singsong voice.

"No way!"

"You should watch where you're go-ing!" She teases.

"She's right…" He thinks giving a quick glance around for other marbles. "Can't get tripped twice…" He blows past Tails who gives him a strange look he can't fathom but doesn't feel like bothering with since he's focused on something else at the moment.

"Wrong way, Sonic!" The fox tells him.

Sure enough he's going against the arrows. "I'll just turn this corner and double-ah!" Caught between two marbles that were following directions and having run most of the way to the hole, which is also in the opposite of the good direction, Sonic slides the rest of the distance on sheer momentum and disappears from view.

"Gotcha!" Amy cries triumphantly hopping up and down. "I may have lost two marbles but it was worth it!" Even her jubilation manages to work in her favor though.

Tails, who had been flying low to avoid contact with the friction free floor, is hit by the ground coming up to meet him due to her bouncing without warning. "Wha-OW!" Then he is smacked with the bottom of the game board. Almost on a direct line to Sonic's trajectory he can't find his feet fast enough having been knocked silly. With nary a sound he too is a loser of the game.

Amy looks back down at the game just in time to see him slip away. "Two down, one to go!"

Chris however had been making good progress to the exit. Leaning into his steps like a skater he is using the terrain to his advantage strategically ducking into horizontal corridors when his path becomes too vertical.

"I'm going to win." Amy says matter-of-factly. "You don't stand a chance."

"Don't count me out yet!" Chris replies continuing forward. "I've got tricks left!"

"Show me!" She says, laughing.

"Just watch!" At that moment the last marble crossed his path. Unlike the ones Sonic faced this wasn't one you could just trip over. It was more of a collision object since it was a tad taller than he happened to be and wide enough to take up the entire hall. With no room to maneuver he's forced to turn tail.

"Show me your tricks!" Amy taunts. Chris says nothing speeding down the slope outstripping his round pursuer. He dodges suddenly left causing his adversary to gasp. "Nice move!" The board tilts, making him have to redouble his pace. "But it's my game!" She reminds him.

Chris and his artful evasions on the downhill at high speed keep getting second-guessed. "I'm running out of time; no matter what I do, she's in control. That marble won't get off my tail..."

"I may only have one marble left but that's all I'll need!"

"I've got one chance…" With that the boy pours on some speed. The faux boulder is gaining fast but he's ahead. He turns a corner and the hole looms ominously in his path. Instead of turning back he lowers his head and charges forward. "If I can clear this I'll win the game!" He leaps over the pit hearing the marble fall in behind him. It's a tad early for celebration though. He falls short by a hair landing in the pitfall beside his friends. "Ow, that hurt…"

"Nice jump, Chris!"

"Well, you almost made it!" Sonic laughs.

"I got all of you!" Amy's boasting now. "I told you so!" She gloats from above.

"Sorry guys." Chris says remorsefully.

"Ah, you win some, you lose some." Sonic replies easily.

"Amy, we lost." Tails yells up at her. "Turn us back to normal!"

"Okay…" She sets the game down and releases the other players but there isn't a change. "That isn't supposed to happen…" She looks uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" Sonic asks. "The game's over, right?"

The pink hedgehog says nothing. She appears preoccupied, looking down at them and contemplating.

"…Amy?"

"Of course not!" She declares. "I won so I get to decide what we do next!"

"Oh, no you don't! You said one game-"

"Hold still!" She commands, making a bid at catching the blue streak despite her earlier promise. She's got a new agenda at present.

"Oh boy…" Chris thinks, jumping out of the way. "This isn't good…"

Amy's plodding overhead is creating a serious hazard for him and Tails. He dives out of harm's way; the fox isn't so quick to move though. Too late he notices a shadow closing in and a gasp is his only reaction.

"Watch what you're doing!" Cream exclaims, restraining Sonic's single-minded sweetheart.

"Can't you see I'm busy?!"

"You nearly stepped on Tails!" The bunny admonishes, scooping a grateful fox from the floor. Cheese doesn't look too pleased either.

"Oh." Amy looks contrite all of one second. "Keep an eye on him for me!" Then she dashes off after Sonic, who has taken this time to exit.

"Okay!" Cream replies eagerly to the rapidly retreating figure. "You can count on me!"

"Thanks for saving me." Tails mentions. "Could you take me down to the lab?"

"No." Cream shakes her head. "I'm supposed to watch you."

"But I have to figure out how to-" He protests.

"No!" She seems adamant.

"Time is of the essence-"

"Maybe after you play with me a while…"

"But-"

"You do make a cute doll though…" She giggles and walks out.

This leaves Chris in the room alone. Having chosen to stay hidden as the best action seems to have served him well. "Out of sight, out of mind I guess…" He thinks to himself. "But how do I fix this? I'll need to get some help…"

The front door is thrown open with a grandiose slam as a familiar figure comes across the threshold. "Chris, honey I'm home!" She calls out to the house.

"Mom!" He realizes. "Perfect, but now I need a plan…"

X

Sonic is fast on his way from Amy. No easy feat at a bit over two inches tall. She's close behind intent on catching him like an oncoming tidal wave with the floor quaking with her progress but this is no surprise to him. He's cool under pressure and bent on making tracks.

"My leg hurts." Sonic thinks to himself. "Might not have wanted to fall on that lamp like I did. Can't let her catch me though, she's bad enough at normal size. She'd never leave me alone like this!"

"Stop!" Amy commands. "Don't you get sick of running from me?"

"Not enough to quit; don't you get sick of chasing me?" It doesn't appear that she heard him. "Right, probably can't hear me way up there…"

"If you stop running we can talk this over." She says persuasively. "We can sit down and rationalize it out."

"Change me back and we'll talk!" Sonic yells back. That seems to perturb his pursuer.

"You can't avoid me forever! When you get tired I'll catch you!"

Sonic has no reply to that. He dashes behind a clothes hamper for quick cover. "I…don't know…how long…I can…keep this up…" He pants, chest heaving. "This carpet…" Suddenly his hiding spot is exposed as she knocks the clothing bin over with a shove. "…!" He quickly bounds left and over an outstretched hand as she dives for him. Hitting the ground running with a short head start he can't resist a taunt.

"Oh, let me get my hands on you…" Amy seethes, leaping to her feet after him.

Sonic just laughs and takes off down the hallway. But Amy means business now and there's no cover to be had behind anything. Hiding in the shade of a wastebasket she sends it flying. Running around a lamp is short-lived as she moves it aside. All forms of shelter are blown through leaving the corridor in disarray and Sonic cornered.

"I've got you now…" She glowers down at her prey smiling fiendishly. Sonic looks to be at a loss as she advances trapped between her and the door to the balcony. "Where are you going to go?"

He's just backing up, doesn't look like he has many options left. She lunges. He dodges slightly to the side, jumping up and slipping from her grasp nearly losing a sneaker as he runs down her back and returns the way he came.

"Just let me get a hold of you…"

X

In Cream's room she's having a ball. Itching with ideas to play with her newest playmate she can't decide on what to do first. Though Tails is also of a singular mind now as well, focused on escape.

"Would you like to play- hey, stop that!" She gently plucks Tails from the air for the umpteenth time. "I'm supposed to watch you!"

"I should really be in the lab analyzing this." Tails tries to explain. "I don't know what kind of side-effects-"

"It's just a game, what harm could it do?" She asks innocently.

The prodigy researcher has no comeback for that. "…I don't know."

"Won't you play with me just a little while?" Cream sounds deflated at the thought of him leaving so soon.

"…" Tails contemplates a bit. "I can't get away plus now I feel bad for her. I need to figure this out but…" He sighs and looks up. "What do you want to play?"

"Yay!" She and her chao rejoice.

"I'm such a sucker for a sad face…" He reflects ruefully.

"We can play house!"

"Oh brother…"

Tails is not disappointed; it is quite embarrassing. After being forced into a doll business suit, tie, and hat then persuaded to walk around with a plastic briefcase he feels pretty silly. It doesn't help that she thinks it's funny, giggling the entire time either, as he simulates a 'workday'.

"You'll make a great dad, someday!" Cream concludes.

"Boy, I'm glad nobody else is here to see me like this…"

"Wow, you're handsome in that." She gushes. "All dressed up like this you'd fit right in at a tea party!"

"Oh no, I have to think of something." Tails realizes. "This is just too much."

"Who's coming, I need you and you…" Cream remarks to herself grabbing various dolls and stuffed animals. "You'll need something to sit on to reach the table." She smirks.

"Umm, Cream?" Tails asks tentatively. "Can I pick the next game?"

"Sure Tails!" His hostess smiles. "We can take turns!"

"Okay, how about we play…" Cream and Cheese are looking at him expectantly.

"Well?"

Necessity is the mother of invention as he hatches a plan on the spot. It isn't his best one but he's got to start somewhere and get some ground. "We can play Hide-and-Seek!"

"Hide-and-Seek?" Cream thinks a moment. "Okay!"

"But I need a big head start. So you have to count to a hundred."

"That's fair." She nods. "Get ready, I'm about to start!"

"No peeking!" Tails admonishes, going to pick his hiding place.

"Aww!" Cream feigns disappointment as she begins the countdown from 100, turning her chao to be honest as she can.

X

Back in the living room at the scene of the crime Chris is still trying to figure out a way to get his mother's attention. Lindsey is just making herself at home though. It isn't as though she's trying to pay attention to a three-inch tall figure on the floor.

"Mom!" Chris yells, going for the direct approach. "Down here!" He starts waving his hands frantically running towards her. "Hey, over here!"

Lindsey seems not to hear and gives a glance back outside. The sound of a car pulling off makes her grimace. "The least they could've done is brought my bags in…" She says to herself petulantly. "I shouldn't have tipped if this is the kind of service I get…" She tramps outside and returns lugging one suitcase in her two hands. "Oh, this is heavy!" She drops it abruptly. "It figures Tanaka would take his off day as soon as I come in town…ugh." She goes back outside.

"Wait!" Chris yells, having made it most of the way across the floor. "Down here!" But he still can't catch her attention as she goes for more luggage. He stops to take a breather. "This isn't as easy as I thought it would be…" He concludes. "I-"

Chris's musings are interrupted as his mother reappears dragging more baggage. Walking backwards she can't see her son behind her and it's evasive maneuver time once again. A quick diving roll leaves him in safety but no closer to being seen. He curses his luck as she puts the bag down.

"I have to do all this in heels? I certainly shouldn't have to deal with this nonsense at all!" Mrs. Thorndike remarks somewhat miffed. "Though now I see what's meant by pack light…" She has a laugh at her own expense then makes another trip to the doorstep.

"Mom, can't you hear me?" Chris moans at her retreating silhouette. "Oh man…" He sighs, feeling a bit discouraged but when she returns with arms laden full of airport carry ons he is all the more zealously leaping up and down trying to get her attention. Running directly in her path as she staggers under the weight of the travel cases he is screaming at the top of his lungs. "MOM STOP! LOOK DOWN HERE! IT'S ME!"

His words seem to reach her. Lindsey stops and looks around tottering a bit unsteadily under her burden. "Hmm?" She queries glancing around. "I swear I heard some-ah!"

Chris's mother very suddenly loses her balance as a heel gives way and sends her tumbling to the ground. It's all he can do to avoid flying bags and the grace of the stars keeps him from being flattened by a comparative skyscraper toppling to the ground next to him. But nothing saves him from being half deafened by her yelp of pain that leaves him doubled over clutching his head with his ears ringing.

"Shoot!" Lindsey says angrily. "I liked these shoes…now I have to change outfits. It wouldn't do to clash…" She gets up. "But of course I have an equally stunning outfit…" She grabs one of the bags she'd just dropped and departs for the bathroom stepping over Chris still curled up in anguish. By the time he recovers from the auditory shock she's already changed. Still decked out in attire fit for a starlet she's wearing a short, clingy deep blue evening gown that would fit right in at a formal dining engagement with freshly done nails and noticeably shorter heels.

"When did she- never mind." Chris writes it off as his mother being a quick-change artist and gets to his feet.

"Hmm…it has been a while since I've been here…" Lindsey remarks to herself. "But where is everybody?" She starts down the hallway. Her cell phone rings. "Hello?"

"Stop!" He yells persistently. "Wait!" But he's getting hoarse so he gives that up. "She can't hear me now, especially over her phone…" He sighs. "There has to be another way…"

"Oh hi, honey!" She replies into her phone. "My day, fabulous! Guess where I am? …no, somewhere better than that, I'm at home! I thought I'd drop by as a surprise. How is everyone…I don't know. I haven't seen anyone yet…" She passes a life-size painting of Chris hanging on the wall. "Where is he?" She wonders aloud. Apparently she hasn't noticed him jumping around underfoot. "No, he might be at school still…it's Sunday? Right, I just crossed the dateline, silly me!" She checks her watch. "You'll be home later, too? Good! Ciao!" She hangs up the phone.

"Got to get her attention…" Chris spies just the thing. A broom leaning against the wall. It's standing next to Lindsey, leaning crooked. A better opportunity there couldn't be. "If I could knock that over I'd get her to look down-" A blue blur whizzes past. "-it'd get her attention for sure!" The floor shakes a bit. "Now, how do I move it?"

The question is answered for him as Amy appears running full-tilt. She knocks the broom over effortlessly and upsets the dustpan beside it in her haste. She brushes past Chris's mother rather impolitely and once again providence spares the boy as the pink hedgehog thunders through the hallway narrowly missing him with a stray step.

"Hi Amy!" Lindsey calls cheerfully. She doesn't respond. "Must be in a hurry…"

"Now what do I do?" Chris wonders, disheartened as Plan B is shot down. "How do I-" The doorbell rings and he barely dodges sideways as his mother steps his direction again.

"Visitors!" Mrs. Thorndike declares enthusiastically. "Wonder who that could be?" She goes to answer the door with Chris tailing after.

X

Sonic is still running as best he can. Fatigue is taking its toll though and Amy is steadily gaining on him. Shag carpet isn't racing pavement and he knows the difference by now.

"Man, I need a ring or a sit down…" He thinks running from Amy for the umpteenth time. "I'm getting tired!"

His pursuer can't help but feel a sense of triumph. "Tired yet?" She asks gleefully noticing him slow slightly. "Don't slow down!"

They reach the scene of the crime, the living room in no time. The doorbell chimes again. Amy disregards it, so focused on her quarry is she.

"Just give up already!" Amy commands as Sonic darts under the couch. "I can't be that bad…" She flips it over and dives where the furniture once sat. A near miss, literally between her fingers he barely escaped. "Stop it!" She demands pensively watching him do a repeat performance under the loveseat. When she flips this one over he runs beforehand and stands behind her.

"…over here!" Sonic taunts with a slight wheeze. She turns to face him and he bolts behind her again. "Too slow!"

She rotates again while he stays to her rear. "Think you're smart, don'tcha?" She pivots one foot and he runs for her other side again. Instead of stopping she tries to keep up. In short order she's whirled enough to lose her balance and fall ungracefully to the floor in a heap. "…ahhh…" She moans dizzily with swirling marks for eyes.

"Still…running…circles…around…you…" Sonic says between pants coming to a stop.

"I'll catch…" Amy says, disoriented. "…spinning…" Her head hits the floor as she reaches half-heartedly for Sonic in a daze.

X

Tails is midway through a game of hid and seek and implementing his plan while dressed for success. Undeterred by overwhelming odds, he plans on using his brains to stay ahead of she who is "IT".

"If I can get that stone on the scanner in the lab I'll have this solved in no time flat!" Tails thinks. "I hope Cream doesn't catch me though, she was still counting last I remember." He enters the living room. An odd sight to behold to say the least lies before him.

The room is absolutely destroyed. Furniture overturned, everything askew and Amy in the center of it all. She's mumbling incoherently at the epicenter of the blast with Sonic close by who is completely wiped out. On the far end of the room the board game is untouched. Tails proceeds to it to assess his obstacle.

"This place is a mess. Ella is going to flip when she sees this…" Tails touches down next to the stone. "Hmm…how am I going to get this loose?" Always resourceful he takes a look around. "Is there anything I can use? Maybe if I could leverage it out…" He tries to wedge a paper clip and pop the golf ball sized rock free. No such luck. "Let's see what else I can try." The doorbell rings insistently several times in succession.

"Coming!" Someone calls from across the room. Cream runs in, attempting to answer the door. She opens it.

"Hi Cream!" Francine says cheerfully.

"Hello." The bunny replies.

"Told you someone was home." Her companion's face brightens. "We were wondering if you'd seen Chris around…"

"When did Cream get here? No telling how long she'll be occupied…if only I could just pick this thing up…" Tails thinks looking from Cream back at the stone.

"Well…"

"We need help with a project from school and he's supposed to be working with us." Helen explains.

"…I haven't seen him." Cream says honestly.

"Ah, guests!" Lindsey says amiably making her entrance. "How are you today?"

"Good afternoon Mrs. Thorndike." The children say in unison.

"Have any of you seen Chris anywhere?" The stylish parent asks.

"We were looking for him too." Francine says. "Nobody knows…" Cream fidgets uncomfortably but says nothing. Her somewhat suspicious interest in the ceiling could be questioned however.

"Is something wrong, Cream?" Helen asks, worried. The rabbit shakes her head vigorously. "If there is don't be afraid to tell someone, I know I'd be glad to help."

"Well, we can sit and wait for him together." Lindsey decides. "I wonder where he is that he's taking this long…"

"Of course!" Tails smacks himself while taking flight. "The robot, it has hands big enough to pick that stone up." He lands on its head. "Pick up the glowing stone!" The scientist commands.

The robot stoops down and picks up the stone from the game board. This doesn't go unnoticed by the other denizens of the room. Mrs. Thorndike as well as her guests look over at it operating apparently on its own with some puzzlement.

"Is that Tails?" Lindsey asks uncertainly. "He's much shinier than I remember…"

"No, that's his new robot." Cream explains. "I wonder what it's doing…" She takes this time to excuse herself and check, walking over to it.

"He's always building something…"

"Place the stone on the scanner!" Tails commands. The robot proceeds to the nearby door to the lab. Cream follows. "She must have seen me!" He thinks, glancing back hurriedly, as his machination heads downstairs.

Inside the laboratory the automaton plugs itself in and places the stone on the scanning area. Cream approaches to examine it more closely and Tails flees, confident that the jig is up.

"This is where you were hiding?" She says with wonder. "You're good at this!"

The person being tracked hides behind a beaker. "If I can keep her busy five minutes the machine will be done with the analysis…"

"Found you!" IT laughs, peering around on the lab table at Miles. She reaches for him but he's quick. A test tube is knocked over but Cheese stops it from hitting the floor yet even so some liquid still spills out. "Good catch!" She says as he puts it back. "I should be more careful."

Tails has hidden again with the sparse time allotted. He watches as Cream looks at all the different color substances in the test tubes and other containers. Various versions of her face are reflected in them. Cheese is taking care to stay out of the way, hovering near the ceiling.

"Still a couple more minutes until the analysis is complete…" The fugitive thinks. "If I can just lay low until then…"

"Looks like Tails beat us…" Cream says resignedly. "I can't find him anywhere…" Her chao is disappointed too. "Well I suppose he really was set on getting away…"

In hiding the fox says nothing. He is completely still and holds his breath. "Just a little longer…"

She sighs. "Let's go." The duo turns to leave when one thing catches Cheese's attention. He tugs on Cream's arm and she picks up on it immediately. "There you are!"

Tails looks like a deer caught in the headlights. He looks around. The coattails of his new suit jacket appear to have hung from under his hiding place giving him away. "Uh-oh…" He starts running across the table.

Cream starts grabbing at him wildly. Several glass things are disturbed but Cheese is watching behind her and keeping them off the floor. Though they aren't falling and shattering, it is making quite a mess with liquid flying everywhere. She doesn't notice since she's caught up in the fun of the chase.

"Got you!" Cream giggles pushing a glass aside and snagging Tails in her other hand. "I win!"

"If it wasn't for this outfit…" Tails gripes to himself.

"Now it's tea party time!" She declares, sauntering out of the lab triumphantly much to her playmate's annoyance.

X

Back in the living room everyone is just trying to find some place to sit when Chris finally catches up to them. Amy is like a fixture in the center of the room, lying there utterly enervated. His friends are just in random places in the room given it is unsafe to roll or tread through the mess.

"What happened? I've got to walk through this? Ugh…" Chris begins the trek across the room in its battleground state.

"Once again please forgive the mess; I have no idea why this is like this." Lindsey says to her guests. "This is no way to treat company."

"It's okay." Helen replies.

"Yeah, really. We know how Amy gets…" Francine laughs.

"Well that's no excuse for this room being in such a state!" Mrs. Thorndike says righteously. "Something's got to be done!" She walks over to the couch and tries moving it.

"Need a hand?" Francine asks. "That looks heavy."

"Thank you." The celebrity replies. "I've never done this before." They move to right the couch first, taking hold of it together and bracing themselves.

"Ready? And push!" They move the primary furniture piece from being upside down to being on its back with a thud.

"Whoa!" Chris is knocked from his feet. "Remodeling? I'd better be careful."

"Okay!" Francine says. "Now one more time!" They set the couch to its legs with another boom. "There!"

"Is that where it's supposed to go?" Helen asks. The amateur redecorators give her a puzzled look. "I don't even think it's facing the right way…"

"Where should it go?" Lindsey asks. "I certainly don't remember." Francine concurs with a shrug.

"Over there, next to that end table. At least that's what I think…"

"So we're moving this to the other side of the room?" Francine asks.

"I'm afraid for décor's sake I must!" The actress replies dramatically. "Otherwise how will I _ever_ entertain?"

"Whatever…on three." They both grab hold of the couch. "One, two, and lift!" They get it off the ground. "Now, forward!" They don't move since with them on opposite ends of the sofa they face two separate directions, pushing at each other is forward. "The other way!" They start moving across the room quickly. Chris is forced to dive out of the way.

"Hey!" Helen says as they pass close by. "Could you be careful with that?" She wheels forward to avoid being hit and stops right next to Chris, nearly rolling over him.

"That was a close call…" He gets up and runs some more.

"Sorry." Lindsey apologizes. "But is it in the right place?"

Helen nods. "Now all you have to do is move the loveseat."

"Okay, on three." The lady of the house nods and they pick up the soft seat for two.

"Put it over here, next to this lamp." Helen directs.

"I'll just stay to the side out of the way then." Chris decides, getting out of the path of the movers.

"Watch out for Amy!" Helen yells unexpectedly.

"Hmm?" Mrs. Thorndike asks. She squeals as she trips over an outstretched leg and loses hold of the furniture.

"Ow!" Amy yelps, coming to. "Hey, watch it!" She hisses recoiling backwards and bumping the wheelchair thusly barely avoiding having the loveseat dropped on her.

"Ahh-" Helen falls from her chair and smacks her cheek on the wall as she lands on the floor. She gives her head a vigorous shake to help clear it. "Oh, that hurt…" She blinks several times, as her vision is still swimming. "What?" She can't believe her eyes, which must still be betraying her.

"Helen, help!" Chris yells, jumping up and down. "Get someone, anyone!"

"Chris…?" She says shakily. She still can't hear him though because her ears are ringing. So she reaches for him.

"Helen!" Francine exclaims, coming to her aid. "Are you alright?" She hoists her friend back into her wheelchair.

"But Chris…" She mumbles with her arm still outstretched.

"What about Chris?"

"He's right there…" She points at the floor.

Francine sighs. "That's impossible. Otherwise I would've seen him."

"He's only this big…" Helen holds her thumb and forefinger a couple inches apart.

"We have to be going. She took a pretty nasty knock." Francine explains. Lindsey nods. "It was good seeing you Mrs. Thorndike. Tell Chris to give us a call when you find him."

"But he was right there…" Helen protests more lucidly than anyone would believe as her friend pushes her away.

"I'm still right here, won't anyone look?" Chris has grown exasperated at the invisible treatment. "I can't believe this…"

"Poor girl…" Lindsey says. "Must've hit her head pretty hard…" She turns to Amy. "And you didn't even apologize! Shame!"

The pink hedgehog looks contrite. "…I am sorry-" She begins but she sees Sonic out of the corner of her eye. "Oh no you don't!" Before she can be questioned she's off towards Chris's room. His mother appears puzzled and remains oblivious to the man of the hour's presence in her immediate proximity and walks off in search of him again.

"My kingdom for a microphone!" Chris thinks, slapping his forehead.

X

In Chris's room Amy has Sonic cornered. He's hightailed it under the bed while she's standing in the doorway perusing the room. She's not letting him get away so easily this time.

"I've got you this time…" The pink hedgehog says slowly shutting the door. "No way out now."

"Uh-oh." He thinks as the door clicks closed. "This is gonna be tricky…"

"If I were Sonic where would I hide?" Amy wonders aloud. "In the hamper?" She upsets it as she makes that her first conclusion.

"Now's my chance!" He's about to dart out and try hiding in the overturned laundry but stops cold as she spins on one leg and places a red sneaker right in front of the threshold. "Aww, she's looking this way!"

"Maybe behind the nightstand…" She continues, pushing it aside. Chris's alarm clock falls to the floor along with a half drunk glass of water that shatters. "I didn't mean to do that…"

"That's out…" Sonic concludes noting the side blocked off with the small chest and debris. "The other side's against the wall, what now? Dash out into the open?"

"I doubt he's in the closet which leaves…"

"Ah man-"

"Under the bed!" Amy says elatedly lifting the solid oak sleeping set. Or trying to as she barely budges it and drops it with a loud bang back down. "That's heavy!"

It's of no consequence as she's succeeded in flushing in flushing Sonic out. He's made a bid at the wardrobe since its door is cracked open and disappears in the cavernous closet. His pursuer grimaces and tramps in after him.

"If I can give Amy the slip she'll give-whoa!" This impromptu hiding place turns out to be a deathtrap in disguise as Amy steps on the pile of bed linen he hid under. He barely flees the collapsing sanctuary in time to regret his choice of hiding spots.

"There you are!" Amy declares, spotting him as he retreats further into the walk-in closet. She yanks a shirt from a hanger to fall on her prey. "Gotcha!"

The meaning of what she said eludes him until red cloth drapes around him like a tent. "What the-" It promptly constricts around him and switches places with the floor, hoisting him up like one caught in a massive net.

"I did it!" Amy exclaims holding her improvised parcel aloft.

"I got to get out of here…" He thinks a second. "Hope this works…" Sonic revs up for a spin dash and tears his way through his friend's shirt making his escape.

"You're not getting away that easy!" Amy says, her smile turning back upside down. She starts pulling whatever she hasn't knocked off the hanger on the way in to stop Sonic's exit.

He dashes and jumps, skidding over clothes old and new even taking a spin dash through a matching two piece suit. "Hope he doesn't miss that…-hey!" Entangled in a pair of Chris's jeans he can't squeeze out or spin through he feels her lift him again. This time securely bound. "It's no good, she's got me…"

Amy seems to know this and is grinning from ear to ear. With her catch in both hands she walks out of the closet. Right into the annoyed countenance of Ella. One look wilts her victorious smirk for the second time in as many minutes. "Let me explain-"

"Explain what?" The maid asks, cutting her off. "That you've left a trail of destruction through the entire house chasing after Sonic? Again?"

"But you don't understand-" Amy begins.

"Understand? I know there isn't anything in the hallway left standing, the living room's been turned over and this room is an utter wreck! What do you have to say to that?"

"I-"

"That's enough!" Ella yells. "Out!"

"But-"

"Out!"

Amy opens her mouth as if to speak but thinks better of it. She shuffles off meekly until Ella stops her.

"Drop it." She commands.

"Huh?"

"Drop it." Ella says again, gesturing at what Amy has in her hands.

"Oh, this?" Amy looks at the jeans and prison of Sonic. The maid nods. "Well I was-"

"Is it yours?"

"…no…" Amy admits.

"Then drop it. It's going to take me hours to clean up this mess; I don't need you spreading his clothes everywhere!"

"Ah-" She stops cold under Ella's gaze. She sets the denim down and backs away. She can almost hear Sonic laughing but does as requested and leaves the room, shutting the door again.

"Silly girl…" Ella mumbles picking up the clothes Amy threw about. "Can't she chase after Sonic _without_ turning this house into a war zone?" She picks up the article that he's in and shakes it out, throwing that very hedgehog to the floor. "Or at least do it outside, it's getting ridiculous!" She walks over to the closet with the bundle nearly squashing him lost in her own thoughts.

"Hey, could you-" Sonic yells but its apparent she's not listening. "Ella!"

"…don't pay me enough to rebuild this house time and time again…" She mutters while rehanging Chris's clothes.

"Oh, come on!" Sonic's getting exasperated. "Down here!"

"Now I've got to sweep up this mess; I told him to put his glasses in the sink!"

"Hey, Ella list-" He's blown from his feet as the straw broom passes him by and pushes the shattered drinking glass and dirt into a pile. "Don't sweep me up!"

It's almost like she hears him because she stops and empties the dustpan. "When was the last time…should do it today just to be sure…" She leaves and returns with the vacuum cleaner and turns it on.

"That doesn't mean suck me up!" Sonic jumps to his feet. "Hey!"

Ella can't hear him over the vacuum and going over the room absently is chasing after him. "I've got to dust and…"

"Aaaahhhh!" Sonic is all but caught by the inflow of air created by the vacuum cleaner. Running as fast as he can against the wind current he's only just staying ahead. It is rapidly becoming a mortal hazard for the blue blur but only he's noticed. "Heeelp!"

"Ella!" Lindsey says, opening the door. "Good to see you!"

"Mrs. Thorndike, what are you doing here?" Ella asks, continuing to work.

"Just thought I'd drop by." She says kind of loudly. "Could you give it a rest? I can barely hear myself."

Ella cuts off the vacuum, releasing Sonic from the gale force winds pulling at him. He barrels out of the open door without delay. "Whew! That was close!"

He blows past Amy who was waiting patiently for him to emerge. "I knew you had to come out sometime!" She's back on his tail in short order.

Sonic shrugs. "Better you than the vacuum!" He thinks to himself.

X

Meanwhile Tails is a guest at a tea party. Though dressed for the occasion he still would rather be elsewhere. But they are taking turns picking games and since his Hide-and-Seek was not only a failure but a waste of his turn he's gritting through a brunch with a less than animated crowd to dine with.

"That scan is probably done by now, I should get down there and fix this-" The genius fox thinks to himself

"More tea, Tails?" Cream asks interrupting his thoughts.

"But how?" He looks around and she's got the exit covered pretty well. "I can't get past her like this."

"More tea?" His hostess is insistent on getting a response.

Tails looks at his cup of water and at the pots lined up, filled with more of the same. He smiles obligingly. "Yes, please. But may I have some of that other pot?" He points at the one furthest away.

"Why of course, sir. Just one moment." Cream goes to fetch the kettle in question. "Here you are." She turns around to refill the cup with a smile. It's apparent by this time that he's already left. "Oh! Come back here!"

"That didn't take long." Tails thinks wryly flying away.

Now Cream is chasing him down the hall. Without much of a head start Tails' flight to freedom seems like it's going to be short-lived. Heavy footfalls behind him and some closing in from the front don't bode well for him.

"Come back here!" Echoes from both sides of the hall.

This puzzles the formally attired renegade for an instant. He doesn't get much time to figure it out as it comes together quite literally with him in the middle. He dives low to avoid collision with Amy running the opposite direction at the last second, landing between them. Cream isn't so lucky and the two of them bump heads audibly as the crack of craniums together is heard through the corridor. Both of them fall, surprised at the unexpected head trauma.

"Ow!" Cream rubs her forehead. "That hurt! You should watch where you're going!"

"Well you weren't exactly standing still yourself either!" Amy retorts as they start arguing.

Tails is ignoring them though. He's got one thing on his mind. "The quickest way down to the lab is that way…"

"What's the occasion, buddy?" Sonic asks all of a sudden beside his best friend.

"Huh, what?" The resident prodigy had been oblivious to Sonic's presence.

"You're all dressed up! Doing something special?" The blue hedgehog smirks.

"This?" Tails remembers the outfit Cream put on him long enough to blush. "Uh…" He looks embarrassed and Sonic laughs.

"Get out of my way, can't you see I'm busy?" Amy yells.

"Other people have things to do too!" Cream fires back, taking a stand. "And yelling isn't nice!" She adds as an afterthought.

"Yeah, well-"

"Stop it you two." The girls look over and Lindsey is approaching. "You know you're not supposed to run in the house." She continues, as her duty as admonishing mother permits.

"But I was-" They both begin.

"No excuses." Mrs. Thorndike says authoritatively. "It's for your own good."

"She was in my way!" They protest as a duet.

"Thinking like that makes for a quick little crash doesn't it?" The girls don't have a response to that.

"This looks like my cue." Sonic notes, running off.

"He's getting away…" Amy whines, trying to pursue.

"You don't want another accident, do you?" Lindsey asks, grabbing her arm.

Tails manages to squeeze through a heating grate and disappears. Cream watches and doesn't even try to reach for him. She sighs and looks down. "Aww…"

"You'll thank me, next time it could be a lot worse than just bumped heads. No running, are we clear?"

"Yes Mrs. Thorndike." They reply dejectedly.

X

Still trailing after his mother, Chris is starting to get a little tired. He watched the whole scene and stays close to the wall as the girls slink off. Dodging them while they were doing their marathon around the house was only the most terrifying thing he'd ever done and he wasn't trying to repeat it.

"You think they'd know better." Lindsey remarks to herself watching them walk. "I don't know what's gotten into them today, tearing around the house like this."

Chris just shakes his head. "If only you knew…"

"Strange, Chris isn't home yet. It's been quite some time…" She walks down the hall some more. "I wonder what's taking him so long?"

"Stumbling after you…" The heir to the estate thinks to himself. "…is the type of thing that takes all day…"

"I'll give him a call." Lindsey whips out her cell phone and calls her son on speedial.

"I left that in my room. Real useful…" He chides himself.

"Voicemail, he's not answering…I'll try again."

"How do I get her attention? I don't know how much further I can walk…"

"Still no answer…hmm…" A phone rings. "Hello?" She says into her phone. The ringing continues. "This thing? It's been ages since I answered this phone." She picks up the house landline. "Hello, Thorndike residence."

"There's an idea." Chris thinks. "Up the phone cord then maybe…" He begins to climb.

"Hi! Fancy catching you on this phone! …yeah, I know, it's been a long time…" She leans on the table.

The climber on the upward journey feels the table shift and the cord swing and decides to look down. "Shouldn't have done that…" He feels a bit queasy but struggles onward.

"You were just calling to check up on things? I see…"

"Almost there…"

"I know it's a surprise and who would've thought on your day off, too! That's the kicker!"

"So, what now?" He surveys the tabletop. "Okay, there's an idea…"

"You hardly ever take time off, Tanaka! I might make you do it more often! No, I won't have-what's that? Is that your phone? It's like a button's stuck…" She looks down at the receiver base. "…I'll call you back…" She stares a bit before hanging up. "Chris?"

He hops off the pound key with a subdued grin. "Hi…"

"Honey what happened?" Lindsey sounds shocked as she picks him up. "Are you eating right?"

Chris suppresses a laugh and shrugs. "I need your help."

X

Amy's back on Sonic's trail and this time better equipped. Trading her hammer for something a bit more appropriate she's got her beau on the run and this time she's playing for keeps.

"Don't you ever give up?" He asks, eluding a butterfly net. "Where'd you get that from?"

The pink hedgehog isn't telling. "Wouldn't you like to know?" She snickers and swipes again, not referring to the hammer space that she must have yanked it from while no one was looking.

The chase goes into the kitchen, the only room spared Amy's rough redecorating style. That doesn't last long though. Sonic bounds in and every swing that follows hits something.

"Slow down, you!" She commands, swinging the net. He sprints under the kitchen table while she narrowly missed and knocks a leg loose. A stack of clean plates bites the dust, sliding off and crashing to the floor while he narrowly escapes the collapsing fixture. "Whoops…"

While Amy has to go around the tilted table Sonic doubles back and runs up what is now a ramp and lands on the counter. This only serves to further frustrate his pursuer as she kicks the table out of the way and starts swinging at the countertop.

"Easy on the appliances!" Sonic jokes evading the pink hedgehog at the expense of a coffeemaker, can opener, toaster, and blender.

This irritates Amy even more (if that's possible) and she screams aloud. "I'll catch you if it's the last thing I do!"

Sonic doesn't believe that for a second. He takes a running leap off the end of the countertop, bouncing off an ironing board and takes a spin on the ceiling fan. He lets go and freefalls to a chair from the passed on table and is jumping to the freedom of the doorway but is caught mid flight before he can touch solid ground. "What?"

"I've got you!" Amy says delightedly, having taken a leap of faith of her own and jumped onto the counter to bound off of the microwave, kicking it to the floor and flying after him with one lucky swing left before he was out of range.

Sonic tries to spin dash but his arms and legs are firmly ensnared in the netting. "…I'm stuck!" He yelps.

"I know." She gloats. "Isn't it wonderful?"

"Let me go!"

"No, I caught you fair and square!"

"Hey, that isn't how it works!"

"Yes it is! Now you're all mine!" She goes exit but almost walks into Chris's mom.

"What do you have there, Amy?" Lindsey asks casually, walking in the rubble that was once a kitchen she personally had decorated.

"Uh, nothing!" Amy attempts to hide the shiny aluminum capture device behind her back.

"Really? Let me see…" Chris's mom goes in for a closer look.

"Hey, she's got me!" Sonic yells.

"What DO you have in there?"

"…Sonic." Amy admits reluctantly. "But I'm not letting you have him!" She declares.

Lindsey smiles, this she could have guessed. "Okay, then can I take care of him for a little while?"

"No!" She barks, backing away.

"But you're going to be pretty busy…"

"Busy with what?" Amy is suspicious.

"What in the world…" An astonished voice comes from the doorway. "This is some kind of nightmare…"

"I'm guessing you'll be cleaning up."

Ella walks in, looking around like it's a foreign land. "How did this happen?" She lays eyes on Amy. "You!" The maid says accusingly.

Amy looks around then points at herself. "Me? Umm…I can explain…" She says weakly.

"I can't believe it! Do you ever stop?" The maid is flabbergasted.

"I didn't mean-"

"You did all this with that?"

"This isn't what it looks like…" Amy says, trying to smooth the situation over.

"So you didn't tear this kitchen apart with that net? Am I hallucinating?"

"Funny story…" Amy chuckles uncomfortably. "Really, it is. I'll tell you later…" She attempts to sidle past the domestic worker. "I promise."

"Let's hear it now." Ella says, catching hold of the escaping Amy. "What happened here?"

The perpetrator looks around again and takes a deep breath. "See, it's funny because I did mess up the kitchen a little bit…with this net…but hey!"

"That's all I need to know!" Ella snatches the net away. "This has caused enough trouble!" She's about to dispose of the mangled thing.

"Can I have that?" Lindsey asks nonchalantly. She smiles as her servant hands it over with a puzzled look on her face. "Thanks a million."

"I couldn't believe you when you said she was at it again…" Ella says. "I didn't think she would have the nerve…" Mrs. Thorndike shrugs. "I'm glad you told me."

Recognition comes over Amy. She points at Chris's mom accusingly. "You! You set me up!" Ella starts to drag her off. "I'd have got away!"

Lindsey just smiles an academy award-winning smile. "You have work to do."

"Let me show you how to _clean_ a mess. You're going to be good at it by the time I'm done with you." The maid leaves with a new assistant in tow.

X

Having made his way through the ventilation system back to his lab Tails is trying to figure out what to do. The workplace is a mess but that isn't high on the priorities list. Despite the dripping coming from the ceiling he's got a few things that are more pressing and a time-limit.

"Okay. Let's see the results of the scan." Tails reads the screen. "If I want to reverse the effect of this stone I'll need to repolarize it. To do that I would need either alternating or direct current…that's simple enough. I'll just hook it to a battery charger, that should do it." He turns to his robot. "Robot, place the glowing stone on the electrodes."

There is no response. The robot continues its recharge cycle uninterrupted, plugged into the wall, motionless. Its master repeating himself as loud as he can over and over has no effect at all.

"Why isn't it responding?" He flies up for a closer look. "Liquid got into the communication port! All that commotion from Cream chasing me must've got something splashed on it. Now it can't hear me. I knew I shouldn't have gone without a remote…"

Tails sits down on the machination's head, despondent since his main means of solving the problem has been taken out of the equation. "Man, that makes this a lot harder. I've got to think…how else can I get access to power?" He contemplates this new problem with a fresh look at his surroundings.

All he can see is various beakers tipped over, several things on burners and his robot standing in a pool of liquid with its cord coiled nearby. None of it seems strikingly helpful and it is on the verge of frustrating the researcher. Listening to commotion and yelling upstairs only serves to remind him of his time constraint.

"I can't use the charger, what about an outlet? I just need to give the stone a shock of some kind…" The floor vibrates and the stone rolls a bit on the exam table. "Is it going to roll off? It'll go into that liquid if it does…" Out of the blue inspiration strikes him. "That's perfect!" He flies over to the rolling orb and pushes it along. "If I can get it to fall into that liquid I can electrify that with something…" He propels it as hard as he can, keeping the momentum. It teeters but doesn't go over the edge. "Come on, fall!" He shoves it as hard as he can. It's no use. "I can't do it, not without any leverage…" He spots just the thing.

A stub of a pencil. Normally used for writing down quick notes he grabs it as best he can and drags it over to the shiny globe shape and wedges the point beneath it with some effort. A couple of hops on the eraser and a floor tremor later and the sphere slides off the table and into the puddle with a little splash.

Tails looks down there and thinks some more. "Now what?" He pants aloud. "The only cord plugged in that's even in the liquid is on the robot and I can't get through that insulation without something sharp. My wire cutters are way too heavy for me to move, even if they are dangling off the shelf. The only thing I could do is hit them with something and send them flipping to the floor but they'll probably miss the cord anyway…but I might as well give it a try."

The fox flies up to the uppermost shelf and pushes a small glass container off the edge aiming to hit the dangling handle of the wire cutters underneath. It shatters when it contacts the tool and the contents drip into the mess below. A serious disappointment.

"There's no way I'll move them now…" Tails looks back at the unmoved snippers. "I'm stuck…" He shuts his eyes and starts thinking again with footfalls closing in the background. "…?" He's startled by a sizzling sound and looks around once again.

The wire cutters seem to be melting quickly along with a sizeable portion of the shelf. The scientist is puzzled for a moment but there's a pop beneath him and a flash. Looking at the cord, it has been eaten away with some of the floor also and stone has changed from green to blue. The robot shorts-circuits directly after that, eyes dimming to black and slumping over. The label on the broken bottle explains it all.

"…Acid. I guess that worked out for the best." The lab door opening startles him and he makes himself scarce. "Not her again!" He thinks, hiding behind more chemical containers. "Come on!"

But it isn't his persistent playmate this time. Lindsey steps in gingerly, looking completely out of place, dressed for a ball in a laboratory. Tails stays hidden and watches even though, today caution is the moral of the story.

"What's all this on the floor?" She looks around at the state of the experiment facility. "These shelves are falling to pieces! Doesn't he-what do we have here?" She picks up the dimly glowing blue orb. "This, I like."

"That looks like the stone from the gameboard." Sonic says. "Only it's blue now."

"Yeah." Chris agrees. "You're right. Do you think different color means different effect?"

"I believe so." Tails says, coming from concealment guessing the coast is clear. "The polarity should be reversed now. We'll be back to normal in no time."

"It would make an dazzling pendant." Lindsey says, ignoring them. She holds it against her dress. "And it's the perfect color! I must accessorize!"

"Umm, mom? I think we need that go back to normal…" Chris reminds her. "I don't think you should just wear it…"

"Oh, okay…"

"Besides, I don't know if it would have other effects from long-term exposure." Tails adds. "I wouldn't wear it, that's for sure."

The fashion diva sighs. "A pity…it is so fitting…" She picks up Tails. "Though there's nothing like having a stylish companion!" She scrutinizes him closely. "You are absolutely dazzling in the outfit, hon!

"Uhh…thanks…" He mumbles, feeling terribly on the spot while Chris and Sonic snicker.

"We simply must dine out sometime!"

X

Back in the living room the gang is trying to think of how to reverse the whole thing. It's been one minute and they're already short on ideas since the obvious didn't work.

"Okay, I put the stone back where it goes…nothing's happened." Lindsey says, standing over them with arms crossed.

Sonic shrugs, leaning against the game board. "I don't know, are there instructions?" He chuckles.

"I don't think Amy brought them with her…" Tails replies. "I didn't see them."

"There goes the 'magically back to normal' plan." Chris sighs.

"Why don't we ask Amy; it was her idea right?" Tails suggests.

"That's no good." Chris shakes his head. "She's going to be busy for a while."

"She'll be cleaning till next year!" Sonic laughs.

"…well, we could try going back through the hole again." Tails says with a shrug. "It's not scientific but still worth a shot."

Chris nods. "What else is there?" He signals his mother.

"Hmm?" Mrs. Throndike stoops down.

"Could you drop us through the hole in the center of the game board?"

"Okay. Do you think that'll work?" No one responds to that and she drops them in unceremoniously. Hitting the game release port they tumble out of the side of the board in a full-size pile in short order.

"Ow, that hurt…"

"You're laying on my arms!"

"Could you both get off me, I can't breathe…"

Lindsey giggles. "And you're wrinkling his suit!" She can't help but mention. Now they're laughing on top of him, creasing his formal wear.

"You aren't getting up any faster!" Tails yells. "Guys? Guys, come on!"

End


End file.
